Lew's Lessons by Lew Buller, USA

Larix sp.

Common Name:

Larch

Bright green fluffy branches with cones of larch tree Larix decidua Pendula in summer day. Natural beauty of elegant larch tree twig. Close-up branch of young larch as green spring

General Information:

Larix is an unusual genus, one of the handful of deciduous conifers. Larix bears bright green to bluish-green needle-like leaves that turn yellow in autumn. It has tiny cones which are purplish on most Larix species. Larches are pioneer trees and will not grow properly in the shade.

In areas with suitable temperatures, Larch is quite popular as bonsai. It is recommended by its quickly thickening trunk, and its foliage, which is fresh, bright green in spring and lovely golden yellow in autumn. Unlike many conifers, Larix cones are small and seem in proportion to most sizes of bonsai.

Family:

Pinaceae.

Lighting:

Semi-shade in summer, full sun otherwise.

Temperature:

Larches are cold-weather trees. Most varieties encounter difficulty in regions warmer than zone 6, and some are hardy in areas as cold as zone 2. The colder and drier the climate, the more compact the needle growth will be.

Watering:

Larch can be very sensitive to watering - as I’ve learned the hard way. Nursery grown trees must not ever be allowed to dry out, or to stand in water. Some larches grow naturally in boggy areas, and these have no problem remaining in water for days. They can eventually be trained to survive with less water, which is a good idea, as larches kept a bit dry develop shorter needles.

Feeding:

Every two weeks during growth, stopping for 6 weeks in midsummer, for developmental growth. Mature larch bonsai are fed very little, again with the hope of keeping needle length reduced.

Pruning and wiring:

Shorten the shoots during growth. The branches may also be pruned in autumn-winter, but always leave 2-3 buds on a branch. Wire from late spring-autumn. Another tip reinforced by experience - do not wire before bud burst as this tends to damage or kill larch cambium. During the growth season, larch responds extremely well to wiring, and it is easy to position a branch exactly where it is wanted. Larches are often seen as formal and informal uprights, and in forest plantings, although they are suitable for all sizes and styles except broom.

Propagation:

From seed sown in April/May - they take a while to germinate. They can be gathered from the late-ripening cones in autumn/winter. The cones must be left in the sun to open, and then the seeds may be shaken out. Cuttings may be taken in late summer from new shoots, and require the use of rooting hormone and a lot of moisture. In northern areas of America and Canada, larch is often naturally stunted by its growing conditions, and collecting larch for bonsai is quite popular.

Repotting:

Larch repotting depends much on circumstance. Young, unrestrained larches grow quickly, although the foliage grows at a greater rate than the root ball. The rate of larch growth can be slowed considerably through bonsai techniques, and by reducing feeding frequency. Tomlinson recommends repotting often, even annually, due to strong root growth. Other sources recommend repotting every 2-4 years, and gradual reduction of the root mass. Repotting should be done in early to mid-spring, or late summer. The books recommend transplanting before bud burst, but American larch may be best repotted after the buds have opened slightly, forming tiny “shaving brushes.” Eliminate unwanted branches to encourage rooting. Use fast-draining soil mix.

Pests and diseases:

Aphids, woolly aphids, bark beetles, caterpillars, rust, honey-fungus, canker, and the dreaded “mysterious wilting disease” which is always fatal to larch.

Some species suitable for bonsai:

Larix decidua: European Larch - this European native can grow to 75 feet tall, and is hardy in zones 4-6. It is a high altitude tree, and can even be found at altitudes above 8200 ft. The flowers are tiny - yellow for male and red for female.

Larix decidua ‘Diane’: contorted larch.

Larix x eurolepis (decidua x kaempferi): Dunkeld larch - a hybrid between the European and Japanese species.

Larix kaempferi (also called L. leptolepis): Japanese larch - the Japanese variety of larch is similar to the European larch in size. It is hardy in zones 5-6 and has bluish-green needles.

Larix laricina: American larch, tamarack, hackmatack - smaller and hardier than the previous larches, the American larch grows to 60 feet, and can withstand zone 2 temperatures! It has finely flaking dull pink or pink-brown bark. This Larix has significant flowers, which are tiny, but bright red.

Larix sibirica: Siberian larch

Bibliography:

Jahn (ed.) “The Simon and Schuster Guide to Bonsai” Owen’s “Bonsai Identifier”

Resnick’s “Bonsai”

Samson’s “Creative Art of Bonsai”

Tomlinson’s “Complete Book of Bonsai”

No. 2 1996 issue of “International Bonsai” dedicated to Larch.

Species information is from Mitchell’s “American Nature Guides: Trees,” and Thomas (ed.) “The Hearst Garden Guide to Trees and Shrubs.”

Compiled by Sabrina Caine Edited by Thomas L. Zane  

Metasequoia

Common Name:

Dawn Redwood

Branches of the Dawn Redwood, Metasequoia glyptostroboides

General Information:

Metasequoia is a genus of one species of deciduous, monoecious, coniferous tree from valley forests of Central China. Metasequoia had been described from fossils by the Japanese but was believed to have been extinct until a small grove was discovered growing in Central China in 1941. Seeds were then introduced to the rest of the world where the Metasequoia tree has spread rapidly through cuttings.

The Dawn Redwood has 2 ranked, flattened needle like leaves 1-3.5cm long that are a pale green turning to red in the Autumn. Particularly admired for its thick, fibrous, orange-brown bark. Can reach heights of 40 meters when mature.

Bonsai cultivation notes

Position:

Full sun. Fully hardy.

Feeding:

Fortnightly through the Spring and summer after new leaves appear.

Repotting:

Every second year when buds extend, repot in basic soil mix, this tree will benefit from inorganic matter in its soil mix as too dry a mix will slow growth. However still allow for good drainage.

Pruning:

A very vigorous tree, continually pinching out is required throughout the year.

Propagation:

Sow seed in Autumn. Hard-wood cuttings in winter, semi-ripe wood cuttings in mid-summer.

Pests and diseases:

None

Styles:

Best suited to formal upright styles either with single or multiple trunks. Also group plantings. All sizes.

Their are three distinct species, two of which hold a record. The Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), holds the record for the tallest tree in the world, at about 112m (360+ feet). The foliage resembles that of the Yew having flat needles.

The Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum), a.k.a the Wellingtonia, after the Duke of Wellington, has more Juniper like foliage, holds the record of being the largest living thing on the planet.

The Third of the redwoods, the Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostrobides), also has flat needle like foliage.

All three will make excellent bonsai their cultural and training needs are identical, needing an open loamy soil, perhaps a bit less grit in the compost 

Taxodium distichum

Common Name:

Bald Cypress

Detail of branch tree Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum), Nature background.

General information:

There are trees 800 to 1000 years old in the Cache River basin in Illinois. Bald cypress The bald cypress prefers very wet, swampy soils. Riverbanks, lake floodplains, wet depressions. They often grow in pure, almost circular, stands; viewed on the horizon, these stands have a peculiar dome shape, with shorter, almost stunted trees growing around the edges and trees gradually growing taller toward the centre. As a landscape tree it grows well in relatively dry soils.

The leaves of the bald cypress are tiny needles, grown in 2 rows along slender greenish twigs:

It is deciduous, although the dried, brown leaves often cling to the tree well into the winter.

A close relative is Pond Cypress (T. ascendans). Similar to Baldcypress in that the trunk is perfectly straight 50 to 60 feet tall, Pond cypress has a narrower crown, is smaller, and has a more open habit. It is found along the edges of streams and around the edge of swampy ground where water is standing; whereas Bald cypress is usually found along stream banks. The bright green, awl-shaped leaves are arranged in an upright row formation along the branches when young, giving a somewhat stiffer and more upright appearance than Bald cypress. The leaves turn an attractive light brown in fall before dropping but the bare branches and light brown, ridged bark provide much landscape interest during the winter. The trunk grows unusually thick toward the base, even on young trees. This is thought to provide support for the tree in its wet habitat. The small seeds are used by some birds and squirrels.

Family:

Taxodiaceae

Lighting:

Full sun.

Temperature:

Zone 5B through 9. The range of the bald cypress includes southern Delaware to south Florida,

Watering:

Watering must be done daily, year round, in the south. The pots may be kept submerged almost to the rim during the summer.

Feeding:

Use a fertilizer that is well balanced such as Peters 10-10-10 at near full strength. Weekly in spring and early summer, every 2 weeks in late summer and fall until leaves start to turn brown. None over winter.

Pruning and wiring:

The bald cypress lends itself to formal upright, informal upright, slanting, literati, twin-trunk and group styles. In nature, a mature bald cypress growing in the open will have a long, limbless trunk, capped with a cluster of horizontal-to-drooping limbs and a very flat top.

The formal upright probably should take this shape. A younger tree in nature will have limbs growing lower on the trunk, and most will be angling upward. The informal upright might consider this aspect.

In far south Florida, Everglades cypress (most of them “pond cypress”) are shorter, and more scraggly; the literati style would suite these admirably. Branches tend to grow the entire length of the trunk -- starting almost at the ground.

Groups of more than 5 or 7 trees might want to emulate the cypress dome habitat that is so natural to them in the Southeast.

That’s not a good representation, but the idea is a rounded dome rising out of a flat horizon. The trees along the edges are usually squat and with many leafless branches. The ones toward the centre are the flat-topped mature trees that are so typical of the cypress.

These trees are fast growing, and wires will damage the bark if they are not watched closely. Alternatively branches may be tied town using a soft raffia twine, tied near the end of the branch to be pulled down, then tie the other end to the base of the tree trunk, to the pot, or to something else (sometimes the base of the branch immediately below). If the branch to be pulled down is thick, you can make a V-shaped incision at the underside of the limb where it joins the trunk. The V will close when the branch is pulled down, and the wound soon knits.

Shape the foliage by pinching back new growth. Let a branch grow for a season if you want to thicken it, then cut it back the following spring. New growth will sprout at the site of your most recent pruning. Twigs sprout at sharp, acute angles, so it is not difficult to develop a gnarled-looking branch (e.g. /\/\/\/\/\/). You can prune throughout the summer, then shape in the fall just before dormancy. Leaves tend to sprout right out from the trunk. Some will develop into a branch if you let them; others are just leaves. In most cases, these should be plucked off.

Developing cypress “knees.” There’s still considerable debate over what these knees are “for” in nature, but they are a distinctive feature of bald cypress. You should try to develop at least one “knee” in your mature trees. They are easily developed by going up to 3 years without repotting or root pruning. By then, roots will be jammed into the pot; many will have bent almost double. If you carefully bring one of these doubled bends (one that occurs quite near the base of the tree, or can be brought in closer) to the surface and let it protrude through the moss cover, you will have what is to all intents a knee. These should thicken and develop well over subsequent years.

Propagation:

Cuttings or air layer are easiest.

Repotting:

Potting and root pruning should be done in spring, just as little green nubs are showing up on the branches and trunk. If the tree is kept in standing water (see below) root pruning is advised every year -- every 2 years at least. In N. Florida, roots have grown 3 feet in a single year (all in a shallow 12-inch diameter pot)

Pests:

None of significance.

Diseases:

Twig blight is caused by a weak pathogen and is usually present on dead or dying tissue. When the

Bibliography:

Bonsai Today, No. 33, Sept.-Oct. 1994, pp. 51-56 The tree pictured on p. 56 is not a typical growth style for bald cypress. USDA Fact Sheet ST-619

Compiled by Jim Lewis

 

Edited by Michael Johnson and Thomas L. Zane